2015 Mercedes-Benz S-class Coupe Spy Photos

The next-generation CL in everything but name.

What It Is: The next generation CL-class, although it will revert to S-class coupe nomenclature to more closely align with Mercedes’ flagship sedan. The name change makes it the first two-door S since the W140 generation of the 1990s. The outgoing CL represented the personal luxury coupe cranked up to 15, and you can expect that to hold true with this one. Yards of cowhide and the finest timbers will be stuffed into freshly sculpted sheetmetal.

Why It Matters: It’s likely that this car is as relevant to you as a doctoral thesis on the reproduction habits of rhinoceros beetles: The S coupe is for the one-tenth-of-one-percenters. As the impractical version of Mercedes’ flagship, it’s a highly ostentatious way to show that you’re so rich you don’t have time for dumb stuff like families. (Either that, or your scions have already been given VP positions in the family business.) The S coupe also is an important image-builder for Mercedes, and it occupies a rare—and no doubt highly profitable—space with very few competitors.

Platform: The S-class coupe naturally will share its rear-wheel-drive architecture with the next-generation S-class sedan, which likely means plenty of aluminum to save weight as well as optional all-wheel drive. The current CL550 is available here only with 4MATIC all-wheel drive, and that might hold true for the new-gen base model, at least in America. Mercedes’ latest safety and telematics equipment will be aboard, too, and all lighting will be handled by LEDs. There also will be an S-class convertible variant that will share the coupe’s mechanicals and styling.

Powertrain: These won’t roll with anything less than twin-turbocharged eight-cylinder power in the U.S., although a six-cylinder diesel might be available elsewhere. Motivation also will come from a twin-turbo V-12—Mercedes intends to produce 12-cylinder engines for a long time to come—and there will of course be the usual high-powered 63- and 65-badged AMG variants. The S platform will be an important showcase for Benz’s hybrid technology, although it’s unclear if the coupe will receive such a powertrain either here or in Europe.

Competition: Bentley Continental GT, Rolls-Royce Wraith.

Estimated Arrival and Price: Look for this top-shelf two-door to hit the streets in late 2014, although, as with the current car, sightings in the wild will be extremely rare. Prices will start at $120,000 or so and move quickly toward a quarter of a million dollars.